Eze sinks Spurs

25:35And what did the coach say to you after the game? Yeah, that he's proud, but also a little bit disappointed. And yeah, it sounds a little bit crazy because we come new in the league this year and now we are a little bit disappointed that we only make one point against Real Madrid. But yeah, this is what it is. And also, if you indulge me, how much belief do you have? Because in this game, I think at the end of it, you've had more possession than Real Madrid. For a newly promoted side, that's very, very impressive. Is it the manager that instills that belief or is it the players as well? I think both.

26:03You need a manager for this and you need the players for this. This is very important and we try everything to bring our football in every stadium against every team. I think when you follow us in this season, you have seen it in every stadium we played. and this is what makes us a little bit special, but we have to continue like this and maybe to win games like this. As you mentioned, the manager says to you he's proud but disappointed. Does that proudness, that pride come in part through, I suppose, how do I express this, the sense that you've got the bravery to play this way? Because as you say, a newly promoted team, you've seen the other two teams that came up last year in the relegation zone at the moment, they're large defensive sides.

26:45You're a team that despite those apparent weaknesses, despite those apparent limitations, you take the game to everybody. Yeah, that's what I think makes us a little bit special, but also that makes more fun the way we play football. I touch a lot of balls. We control many games, the style we play, and this is the way we do it. As you say, it is a lot more fun. We really, really enjoyed it tonight. I don't know if that's any consolation to you, the fact that the fans really enjoyed it, the fact that people like us turn up and really enjoy it. But it's been a real breath of fresh air watching you play this season.

27:18Yeah, thank you. Yeah, we do an amazing job. I think everybody is not, you cannot pick one play out of this collective. And that's what makes us special. We don't have the stars. We are one team and we are fighting every game for points. Thank you very much. Thank you. Thank you. Ciao. Thanks very much. Take care.

27:44Well, that wasn't too bad, was it? Shall we throw it to Ian and Macca, see what they've got to say? Let's see what Ian and Macca have got to say. Well, what we've got to say is I think that fellow you were just talking to, David Affengrubber, is a big contender for man of the match, along with Alish Fébas, who scored one of the goals, along with Hermann Valera, who caused havoc down that left-hand side. But I can't think of a Real Madrid player who was in any contention. They were a bit lucky to get the point, frankly, weren't they? Yes, they were. and I agree with what Stuart and Luis were saying.

28:14It probably would have been better Real Madrid to lose today because they would have then had an inquest into how bad they were because the side that Xabi Alonso picked didn't turn up at all. Well, they still have an inquest. Well, yes, but they got away with it and they got a point and they've gone back top of the league. So it'll brush over the fact that it's happened. But I thought they were really, really, really disappointing. And you look at that side today and you think, what's changed from Carlo Ancelotti's side? And the answer is nothing. They look as if they're just a bunch of individuals defensively, but they were terrible all over the place again, playing just for moments, hoping that Kylian Mbappe or Vinicius Jr.

28:52do something magnificent. And you can't rely on it at the moment. They need to wake up. So whatever the stamp that Xabi Alonso is looking to put on this side, he hasn't done it yet, has he? God, no. No. I mean, everything that Xabi Alonso did at Bayer Leverkusen, And whether you play three at the back, which is, you know, of course, is hard to do at Real Madrid. But pressing the ball, working hard, you know, maximum effort. That wasn't there tonight. And it was just off the cuff, running around, not helping. You see the second goal today. Nobody closes Alvaro Rodriguez down. He picks the ball up on the halfway line.

29:26Runs, turns Raul Asensio inside out. Just amateur football. You're thinking to yourself, when are they going to pick it up? Yes, they've gone top. Yes, it'll hide a multitude of sins. but if they play like that, they're not going to win anything this year, are they? You know, Villarreal and Atletico Madrid are breathing down the necks. Forget about Barcelona. Barcelona are in a much better form than Real Madrid are at this moment in time. Big picture. That's good for La Liga, to me. A team like Alche in 13th place give Real Madrid as good a game as that. And now you've got a real title race. Villarreal are in it.

29:57Atletico are in it, if you look at the table now. That's got to be good for this league. And I thought that was great. a team like Elche played the way they did against Real Madrid. They thoroughly deserve what they got from the game. Yeah, you don't want to push over the fact that Real Madrid were poor because we have to focus on the positives. And Elche came and played and played Madrid at the game. They didn't sit back and defend. They wanted to play football. They wanted to go forward. They wanted to impress, and they did. And they deserve everything they got. It's just a pity, as you can hear by Siren Naram speaking to David Affengruber.

30:26He was upset, and you can see why. They deserve the three points today. And unfortunately, they've walked away with one, but still it was an excellent performance from Elche and going forward, if they play like that, they'll stay in La Liga, no problem at all. Yeah, I think we're going to buy a pair of shoes from Elche. Back to you, Kay. Thank you so much, guys. Great call today as well. But as it stands, it's a three-game winless run. Obviously, there was the Liverpool game in the Champions League before the international break. There was the draw against Rayo Vallecano and now this draw against Elche.

30:53Many things are going to be asked as it stands right now. We haven't heard from Xabi Alonso, but his team selection tonight, That's the first thing that he's going to be picked up on, surely. Yeah, definitely. I'm sure why he wasn't Vinny Jr. involved, why Valverde. I think that he can give a little bit of argument because they've been involved in international, long trips, peak a little injury. But I'm not going to focus just on the players. I think the way that the team approached this game, it wasn't the best one. You could see in the 50-50s, LJ was more aware of it. It was more intense. It was more energetic.

31:26Center of the midfield. we've been talking a lot that it was missing since the Tony Cruz talks and arguments we haven't been saying that this Real Madrid needed someone why Thuy Mendy wasn't there because he's been a big talk but when you put together a team because you want to have more of the ball you want to have more creativity and bring the ball in better condition to the players up front with Arda Goulet and Ceballos you know that you're going to struggle because you're going to play in front with a team that is one of the best teams third team with more position in the league. You've seen them play.

31:58You know that they wait for you. They allow you to come to open spaces for you to decide where to go. All those kind of moments, you know that you're going to face. And then you decide to bring Arta Gullet and Ceballe probably in the worst scenario, in the worst moment to play against a team that have more position. So if you start from that one, you see two young players at the back to have them play much together and they play against two physical players at front. You start getting small things, small details. And if you put that all together, you got this. A team that doesn't know if they're going to go up front, if they're going to sit at the back, or if they are going to have their possession in the middle of the park.

32:37And small things become a big problem. And that's what Real Madrid took tonight. They managed to get a point, and that's something that we were expecting because in the second half, they are going to improve. Even Jubellingham, we saw why Jubellingham didn't start the game like we saw in the last 20 minutes with that energy, grabbing the ball, passing players, moving around. I didn't know why, because maybe he wasn't happy with what was happening around him. So small details managed. And I'm going to just say one more thing. Body language I said about Vinny Jr. When Vinny Jr. was coming in, Ceballos and Rodrigo was leaving the pitch on the side.

33:09They were attending. It was a stop. The game wasn't on. And it took a little bit of time. And they never went into the middle of the park to try to say goodbye to the players. I think that those kind of moments are very important to look at. Why two players are getting changed. It was Frank Garcia from the other side of the pitch, went into the middle of the park and said hi and goodbye to the players, wishing all the best, and it was Ceballos and the other players. And Rodrigo were living out of the pitch. So this kind of situation is something that Xavi also doesn't address in control. It can be a big problem in the future.

33:42On that physicality point that Luis brought up earlier, and you mentioned the centre-backs, is that a concern for Real Madrid when they come up against physical teams, Robert? Yeah, because what they wanted to do to start with, that Elche were going to try and play out from the back. And they took some big risks in the first half. So Real Madrid put almost five players up. So the goalkeeper was then going to go long. And they pushed their fullbacks in as well. So it was two centre-halves against two centre-forwards. And if one of them's going for the ball, he might not win the first ball. The other centre-half has to be round on the cover.

34:08And Asensio wasn't round on the cover for the chance where Andre Silva should score. He's actually in front of the other two players. So there was lots of issues there. There was lots of issues with ball watching. There was lots of issues with when they got played around. There was no recovery runs. That's the key to defending, recovery runs. You know, seeing the danger, seeing runners going, dropping off if somebody else is challenging so you can pick up the bits and pieces. All those things weren't right for Real Madrid today. And that's a real worry going forward. And it looks to me as though Xavi, and you talked about the body language, the players aren't quite sure what they're meant to be doing at the moment.

34:44You know, I'm giving the players a bit of an excuse here, but it doesn't look as though they realise, what is my... you said Jude Belliam. What is his role in the team? I'd love to ask him, what is your role in the team? What do you think it is? Is it that you just want to score goals and get into the box? Do you want to be a normal midfield player that creates? Do you want to be somebody that picks up the bits and pieces? He's an excellent player, but I don't know what he's doing at the moment. Yeah, and another player from England that we need to talk about today as we go back down to our boys at the side of the pitch is Trent Alexander-Arnold.

35:12Sid, on the commentary, Ian Dark said, if this was an audition, how would he have fared? It'd be great to get the thoughts of yourself and Nadeem on that? If this is an audition, I don't think he gets the part. I think that's the short answer to that, not least, of course, because there are other players who can play that part. We've seen Danny Carvajal is currently injured, but Fede Valverde has played it right back. And there have been times this season where we have suspected over the last three or four weeks that Xavi Alonso prefers Fede Valverde, a midfielder, at right back than Trent Alexander-Arnold.

35:39And just to pick up on something that Robbo said there, that defending is about the recovery runs, in part as well, isn't it? And this is certainly what I think we were thinking watching the game from pitch side. It's also about being well-positioned enough that you don't need to make those recovery runs. Yeah, positioning is a very good starting point. But, you know, if you're out of it, then the desire to be there is going to be a key thing. I think his performance today can be seen in two different ways. Because from an attacking standpoint, with the set pieces, yes, he was dangerous. From a defensive standpoint, felt like there was a lot of attacking down that side for Elche.

36:07And I think that says a lot. And for me to kind of sum up how I perceived his game today, because I think there's some things within football that go sort of under the radar. There was a point where Real Madrid were desperately trying to defend, desperately trying to defend. Bodies were being thrown everywhere. And then there was a chance for a quick counter-attack, and I think it was Courtois threw the ball to the halfway line. He was on the halfway line. It was Trent Alexander-Arnold, the player that should have been back there with the melee of bodies. But instead, unfortunately, he's the one that starts the next attack, and it looks good, but in reality, it's a letdown to those other people who've put everything on the line to try and stop that goal.

36:39But I don't know what you guys think, Kay, but that's definitely my opinion.

36:45Yeah, when you take a look at the table, that's what we're actually looking at as it comes to that now. Atletico now just four points behind Real Madrid at the top of the table, just at the top of the table as well because they've just got a point ahead of Barcelona, only picking that point up here against Elche. Barcelona had closed the gap yesterday. Obviously, Luis, you've said that, you know, we know there's a title race on here, but it's getting really hard to call at the moment and Barcelona are getting closer right now. Yeah, getting closer. and the guys just mentioned, the rhythm of Barcelona.

37:14We saw it yesterday at NET club is really strong. They are missing a lot of players also. It's not that they haven't recovered. And all of them, it was Rafinha, the one late, he played yesterday at 10 minutes. But you can see that if Barcelona plays here, at least you can see that intensity. You can see the movement. You can see the ball flying from one side. We can talk about that high line or not, but you can see that it's something there that they are trying. Today, we didn't see anything from Real Madrid, much more than trying to bring the ball as soon as possible to Mbappe. That is the one who was trying to create something or being more as a threat.

37:48So those kind of moments, it's a long season. There is still a lot to be played and Champions League is going to be involved. And we all talk about February, March, when the things are more important. And always these kind of players, Real Madrid players, they show up in the most important moments. But definitely it's a concern because if you start dropping points at Elche, at Rayo Vallecano, games that you should get the three points, you're going to miss those points at the end of the season. What are your thoughts on it, Robbo? We're saying as if Barcelona are in great form. They played quite well last night.

38:14There was moments in the game where they were still outplayed and they had a couple of moments where they got away with it. Barcelona still have problems defensively. It's going to be a great season because neither of these sides, Real Madrid or Barcelona, are going to be at their very best. Neither are going to be totally dominant, which makes it even better. And it leaves the other clubs a chance to maybe catch them up because I watch Barcelona every week and I don't think you know what you're going to get from Barcelona. You're going to get chances, you're going to get shots at goal, you're going to get goals, but you don't know what they're going to do defensively.

38:41So that's a key point. Right, yeah, key point for both of them right now. You're not quite sure what you're going to get from them. And we've seen that today from Real Madrid. Let's get back to Sid and Nathan for their final thoughts down from the side of the pitch. Well, Barcelona fans will have to forgive me and Real Madrid fans will have to forgive me, Kay, for saying that what you're talking about there, I think is great news. I'm looking forward to the possibility of having a league title race that maybe involves Atletico Madrid and Villarreal as well, that maybe involves four teams and not just those two.

39:07And I think that really and truly, and I wish this wasn't the case, but I think it is true that for those other teams to be involved, it probably needs to be a season in which the big two are a little bit vulnerable. And so in that sense, with apologies to fans of those two teams, I quite like the fact that they're not at their best. Yeah, you know, I'm going to buy into that. I think that's perfectly fair. I think both sides are basically showing the issues that they have at this moment in time. And it's not to say that they can't improve as the season progresses. Because the talent is there.

39:30Exactly. But it's interesting to see at this stage right now. And I've got to say, I hold my hands up. I said it was going to be four on Real Madrid. listen I'm a full believer in Elche I'm a full believer now I'm an Elche truther so from this point forward they will never lose a game again in my eyes ever again ever again good right you heard it here we did hear it here yes we have heard it here we finally found Nadam and got him a team it would seem in La Liga and if only Alexis there was one place where you could watch La Liga all season to see how all the drama is going to play out oh there is back to you yes indeed of course La Liga guys on ESPN all season long, but guess who's going to come over here all weekend long or all week long, I should say.

40:12Stuart Robson, I believe you're getting on a first class flight all the way here because we have a Thanksgiving ESPN FC date. First class. Bucket class, I'm afraid. You know, they won't pay for my first class. No, bucket class. Oh, come on. The top honors. He gets first class. I just get bucket class. All right. Well, thank you so much, guys. Just have a look at Robbo's boots, let's be honest. A man like that is not getting on bucket class. Okay. All right. All right. Well, you heard it from Kay. La Liga is on ESPN all season long. The next time Real Madrid are in action, they have a midweek fixture in the Champions League, but when it's back to La Liga, they will face off against Girona that Sunday, November 30th, 3 p.m.

40:56Eastern time on ABC. Avoiding your unfinished home projects because you're not sure where to start? Thumbtack knows homes, so you don't have to. Don't know the difference between matte paint finish and satin? Or what that clunking sound from your dryer is? With Thumbtack, you don't have to be a home pro. You just have to hire one. You can hire top-rated pros, see price estimates, and read reviews, all on the Thumbtack app. Download today. Buster Olney here for La Quinta by Wyndham. When you're on the road this summer traveling for work, your routine can fall behind faster than a 3-0 count, especially if your hotel gym is non-existent.

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42:08Let's check in on the City app because today was all about the Derby de la Mando. Nina Inter up against Milan and it went Milan's way thanks to a long goal from Christian Pulisic. The U.S. player managed to pounce on a rebound to get the goal that made all the difference for AC Milan. This is exactly what it means in the table. The victory takes Milan into second place, two points behind leaders Roma after they had a win this weekend as well. Inter, they're in fourth, one point behind Milan and two points off the top. Not our Gab Marcotti, but his partner in all sorts of crime. Giuliano Ronaldo's watching this game.

42:46We had to pry him away from Ligue 1. But, Jules, thoughts on this game, deserving win for Milan? I mean, as we saw in the highlights, not really. I think Inter were wondering how they at least didn't get a point in this game. They were the better team, especially in the first half. And then that Jan Sommer mistake, I think we can call it like that. Pulisic who scored and the Charno Glu penalty miss. And in the end, it's just, I mean, Inter had a lot of the ball, a lot more than Milan. They had a lot of shot, low quality shot for some of them, but they hit the woodwork. And really, they should have been on top.

43:17It's similar to some of the games that we saw last season between them two. But Milan will be very happy, obviously, and Max Allegri especially. with a win like that, where for Christian Kivu, it's another top game where maybe they should have been far more efficient in both boxes. And they were not. Whether you can blame that a bit on his tactics or a bit on his substitutions, a bit on the players starting. But I was glad to see Magic Mike again become big, being really big for Milan on that penalty save. As for Christian Pulisic, because of course, you know where we are and you know we have to talk about him.

43:48He's enjoying quite a season with Milan. Thoughts on his performance today, Jules, and as Ale said, right place, right time. Yeah, he's become really, really good at, isn't he? Since he moved to Milan, he had obviously the injury. There was the whole shenanigans with Pochettino and the US men's national team. In the meantime, Rafael Leao also came back from injury. And I think that front two now of Pulisic and Leao, as we saw tonight, more than any other combination that Allegri could have up front for this Milan team, is the right one. I think they played really well with each other. They have different qualities.

44:20They complement each other really well. and Pulisic, since he moved to Milan, has come really big in those kind of matches. That's why he was Serie A player of the season, not last season, the season before that. That's why he's been Milan's best player really since joining the club. So again, the game today showed, even if he didn't have a great game overall, like this Milan side, but he was there when he mattered the most, super efficient and with a winning goal, that's all you ask him for, really. All right, well, if you want to hear from Julien Laurent a lot more, and why wouldn't you, let's be honest, Guess what?

44:52In less than 24 hours, a new edition of the Gab and Jewel show is going to drop. And make sure to get it, as I'm pretty sure they'll be speaking a lot more about the City app. Gotham FC managed to hang on to win the NWSL Championship. Something that they have done already with our very own Ali Krieger as well before she hung up her boots. And here is exactly what it means to Gotham. They've got two NWSL titles. And like I said, they know exactly how to win this. Let's hear from the girl of the moment, Roosevelt. We're just so happy. We're so excited. I keep saying, I think like we've had a roller coaster of a year.

45:37So I think to like get this is just kind of icing on the cake. We have such a special group and I'm just so excited to have been able to win this with them. All right, well, there was a special edition of Football W with full reaction from the NWSL Championship that came on last night. It's available now on ESPN+. As you know, managing maintenance, repair, and operations is never easy. But for the ones who always rise to the challenge, Granger has your back. From professional-grade products you can count on to fast, dependable delivery, they're there to help you keep things running smoothly. Plus, their technical product specialists are here to help answer your toughest questions.

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47:29That's ethos.com slash sports. Application times and rates may vary.

47:47All right, welcome into Extra Time on this Sunday fun day. We've got Julian LeRons looking a bit confused that he's still with us. He's almost like, what? Wait a minute. I thought I was going to sleep. What? He said, I thought it was clear. It's late night in London, but no, Jules. I'm tired. You're still very much with us. Oh, wah, wah, wah. Wah, wah, wah. All right, let's get into it because the first question is actually for Jules. Yeah. Jules, how active do you think Liverpool will be in the January transfer period? Well, it's funny you asked this. It's a good question because the question was asked on a slot, I think, in his pretty much press conference this week, I think, about if he's already thinking about sending a centre-back, a centre-back especially.

48:32I mean, the central defender position, we talked a lot about it when they missed out on Gehi. We talked a lot about it because they've been considering a lot of goals. And why if something happens to Konate or Van Dijk, Konate who hasn't been great at all. And Slot said, I'm not even thinking about January transfer window yet. We are in November. I'm thinking about the next game, blah, blah, blah, blah, blah, blah. They must be thinking about at least a centre-back for January. Or maybe a defender that can play, maybe right back, maybe centre-back with a bit of versatility. But they have to go out on the transfer window and sign.

49:05Whether it's Gehi and trying to have another go at Gehi and convince Palace to let him go halfway through the season. If it's not that, then somebody else. But they have to, really. I know they probably are thinking about how to get this team better for now. Sure, and the immediate, the present is more important than what could happen in January. But surely Richard Hughes, Michael Edwards, all that team of recruitment and have to think already about a defender in January. Stevie, that's what you want to see? Liverpool being very active. Well, I think they got caught with the pants down over the Gehi one because they obviously thought it was pretty much done.

49:45And then, of course, at the last minute, it didn't happen. And then, you know, we talked about it and said, what if? And then the what ifs have all started to come true. And there is absolutely no cover. Joe Gomez, who I believe is fit now, but you can't rely on him to get through one game, never mind a series of games. And so, you know, you're not looking to go and spend £90 million on a defender. What you need to bring in is a honest, reliable centre-back who can do the job till things settle down. And then you come next summer and then you try and sign... Not maybe 90 million, but you try and sign somebody who fits the profile, the whole thing.

50:34So absolutely, 100%, they, if they do not sign a defender in the January window, then this chaos seems like it will continue. Well, speaking of the chaos at Liverpool, that's what the next question is kind of about. from Miggy who says, why are we not talking about how big of a flop Isak is and Virts while criticising Jokeres more? Why? I think we do talk a lot about Virts. Miggy, have you been watching the show? Why? But Isak, big flop? Can we call it this already? No. No, you can't see it. The gang's not 100 % fair. And he's playing in a team that can't chew fermentation. Julius's at the same time.

51:22So it's a kind of, again, it's a recipe for disaster. And that falls into the same sort of category. I mean, you cannot question the ability of these two guys. The circumstances right now are still in a position where you can't point a finger at either of them. This is not... Obviously, they take some responsibility, but this is not all on them. Hello. The struggles of Liverpool are not down to just the fact that they're missing a centre-back or just the fact that Isak is not scoring the goals or just the fact that... If it was only that simple. Or that Florian Verz hasn't been as productive as they would have wanted him to be.

52:04All those things combine plus, and that's the problem. It's all those things that I just mentioned, plus, plus, plus, plus, plus. There are so many different things about this team right now that are a problem. But I think most of all, now doubt is all over the minds, the hearts, and the souls of these players, of these fans, of this manager. And it's all over Liverpool as a club. And when you have that dark cloud of doubt all over you, that you believe things are about to happen that are negative. When you believe wholeheartedly, like, here we go again. That's the feeling that I got after the first goal by non-enforced.

52:46in that Liverpool thought, here we go again. When you have that crept into a locker room, it is so incredibly difficult to turn around. The only spot where they don't have any trouble is the goalkeeper. But even the goalkeepers will be affected by this because they will not know who to cover, when to cover, how to cover. It affects them as well. But that's the one thing I would say that is not a problem. Everything else, unfortunately, is a problem. Coming to work for Liverpool, coming to training for Liverpool, it has to be such a difficult task for players right now. Because you know, you walk into that locker room and you know you can feel it, you can sense it, you can taste it.

53:31The atmosphere is thick with all sorts of tension, with all sorts of pressure. And that's no way to try to get yourself out of a hole. And that is indeed the position that they're in. I'm so glad we don't have to experience that. We love coming to work. I thought you were going to say I'm so glad you're in trouble. No, I'm not heartless. Well, you wouldn't say it on air. Jules had enough of this conversation. Jules is tapped out. That's the next question. Sorry, Jules. Oh, call him back. Somebody call him back. Have we lost Jules? Okay, we've lost Jules. I think he just hung up on us on purpose.

54:06Tell me, go to bed. Call me back. Jules, we're going to let you go to bed soon. Oh, we lost Jules. Call me back though. We'll call him back and then we'll figure it out. We lost Jules, which is such a shame because the next question could have been for him. If Arsenal win the league, is it fair to say that the standard and quality is terrible this season? Man City rebuild and Liverpool missing. How does it compare to Liverpool last season? No, you can't say that. Just because one team is so much better than the rest, You can't see the standard and the quality to it. I think what we've seen so far, I've enjoyed, is it just me?

54:45I've enjoyed the Premier League games more so far this season. Oh, wait. We've got our expert back. Wait a minute. Yay! Hold on a minute. Jules is back. Hold on a second. We actually didn't want Stevie to answer this question. What does that leave me in? No, no, no. You are not the expert and neither am I. Clearly not. Alan is my Bundesliga expert. We've got the expert back. We've got the expert. We call them back. We call them back. Because this slightly has to do with Arsenal. Jules, the question. Stop with us. Yeah, absolutely. Jules, the question was, if Arsenal win the league, is it fair to say the standard and quality is terrible this season?

55:21Man City's rebuild and Liverpool are missing. How does it compare to Liverpool last season? Stevie was saying you can't say that. No, I mean, it's funny you say that, because we had this discussion with Natham this afternoon, together by messages. I know he was in LJ and I was in London, obviously. Oh, that's a bromance for you. Because last season, it's a debate that... Yeah, of course it is, you know. Last season, Liverpool were much better than anybody else. And the level overall of the Premier League last season wasn't great. It was not a vintage season. We repeated that. It took nothing away from how good Liverpool were and how much they deserved their title.

55:54No problem at all. I think we could see something quite similar this season. We talked about how bad this Spurs team is. And they are really bad. And yet, not that long ago, they were third in the table. Brentford at some point yesterday, during Saturday's game, Brentford were fifth in the Premier League table when they took the lead away at Brighton. So this, and you can give me the whole, this is competitive, it's the Premier League, it's the best. Maybe, but it's not a very good season. Outside of Arsenal, the other teams are not very good. Even Chelsea, even you're United, by the way, as you said, we can go top three if they win tomorrow against Everton or something like that.

56:33Hang on, I did not say that. I did not say that. And I'm the first to say that we were bad. No, I would never. But I'm not taking anything away from Arsenal and how good Arsenal have been, and they've been by far the better team. But we have to be also honest, we haven't seen great games, we are not seeing great performances, great teams outside of Arsenal. TV, you better differ. But the thing is, see, here's the thing.

57:02I agree last season was poor. I 100 % agree last season was poor. But I would argue that I've enjoyed a lot of the games this year so far. Now, if we want to start nitpicking and talking about quality and this and that, I mean, there is small margins between so many teams because of the money. I mean, let's be honest, we're talking about Brentford here. Brentford have gone and spent£42 million on somebody. Little Brentford, who got a tiny wee stadium. Is that actual information? It is. It is. I'm just making sure. He knows his stats. He knows his numbers. He's bringing it. He's bringing it. So, you know, all the teams are spending that kind of money on players.

57:49The whole thing is going to start getting closer, which it is. But it seems too easy to me to turn around and say, well, because of that, it means the teams aren't good. I like it. I don't go along with that at all. All I would say is that it's not Arsenal's fault that everybody else is having issues. That's on everybody else. That's Manchester City's problem. That's Liverpool's problem. That's Manchester United's problem. Spurs' problem. Chelsea, whoever. That's their issue. As for Arsenal, they look the part. They're doing their part to make sure that that difference that we think is perception is actually reality.

58:31The perception is Arsenal got to figure out. Everybody else is still trying to find answers. Issues. We all have them. We all have them. You okay? Next question. Listen, United's issues have been around for about a decade now. I've made peace with it. Have I made peace with it? Check me tomorrow. Next question is today's performance by Eze and Spurs' failure to sign him over months. A prime example of why Levy got pushed out, Jules. Yeah, I think so. And I know it's not just the Eze signing, obviously. I think the Eze not signing, if you want, was probably the final straw. A time where the club, through the Lewis family, you know, and Enik, and also the arrival of Vinay as the kind of CEO too.

59:19It was a time for restructuring anyway. And I think already because of what happened at times in the past with Daniel Levy, there was a lot of pressure on him. But the A's signing with Spurs, let's be honest here, Spurs should have signed him. They should have signed him. There's no, you can't turn in, they should have signed him. He was theirs. The fact that they didn't do is because of Daniel Levy predominantly. And I think just for that, it showed again that it was not the right guy to guide this club towards a different direction in a new era for something different. And that's why he then was let go, really.

59:58It's as simple as that. But you're right. And it's too simplistic to say, look at Eze today for Arsenal. And what if he had played for Spurs today for the season? All of that. We will never know anyway. But it's true that the fault lies on Daniel Levy on why he was wearing the red shirt and not the white shirt today. All right, next question. Stevie, what's your ESPN FC buyout clause so the Reds can bring you home to save slots sinking ship? Wow, say that three times fast. First of all, he doesn't have a buyout clause. We're not going to let him. That's a lot of mints and tatties. That's a lot of mints.

1:00:31It's too bad. A lot of crates. A lot of monster munch. Someone once told me a house is only worth what someone is prepared to pay for it. And you're a big house. And you're a big house. So that final number is really not down to me. It's only what somebody's prepared to pay. And I think, well, we've seen... Regardless of what's in the club. Stevie, I think you're priceless. You're a good liar. Oh, no! Stop it. You know I mean it. I know you do. Exactly. Stop. Next question. Ale. I have a prize. You have a prize. Ale, Hugo Lloris complained about playing on plastic carpets in Vancouver last night.

1:01:17Is he just being salty after losing or does he have a point? What's your experience playing on turf? Well, turf, even though it's gotten much better now than what it used to be, He's still terrible. Still not as good as playing on natural grass. Anybody who has played on turf would let you know that that is exactly the case. And it impacts the way that you play the game because the ball doesn't bounce the same way that it usually does on natural grass. So it does impact the game. As for Hugo Lloris, what I would say is I don't think it impacted how he played the goalkeeping position. And it must be said that in this particular game, there were moments in which he could have done a whole lot better for LAFC, particularly the second goal by Vancouver.

1:02:02He would argue that it's actually the balance of the ball was not true on the turf. What I would say is that catch the ball, bro. Catch the ball. And if you're not going to catch it, it's got to go wide. And he didn't. And then he ends up getting scored from a very tight angle. So I understand the general concern and feeling about turf, and I sympathize. But it's not the reason as to why LAFC lost yesterday. LAFC were playing against nine men in extra time when the game was 2-2. And they were unable to score a game-winning goal even though they had four or five quality chances. They didn't do it.

1:02:38That's on them. It's not on the turf. Nine. Yeah. I thought it was ten. No, we just fast forwarded through. We can't show all the highlights, Stevie. It was a jam-packed game. Wow. If not, we'd still be here. You've got to cheat to complain about the field. All right, well, I'm just saying. Oh, all right, all right. Jules is getting antsy because that's his boy. You can't talk about his Frenchies like that. But speaking of Jules' Frenchies, our final question, Jules, is about one. Pogba played his first match in two years. Is there any chance he makes the France squad in June if he's fit? I'll answer that one.

1:03:13I mean, that's his dream. That is his absolute dream. I think because of the relationship that he has with Didier Deschamps, it was like a father and son kind of relationship. I think the door will always be open from a Deschamps point of view. But let's be honest here, it's as much as I would love him to do, and love him to be part of that 26-man squad to go to the 2026 World Cup, it looks quite unlikely. He played five minutes, he came on in the 85th minute yesterday, and to be fair, touched the ball far more than I thought he would in that space of time. and already you could tell he wants to be involved, he wants to be part of it and get the ball all the time.

1:03:54But there's a difference between that and being ready for the World Cup for your country. And he's not there yet. Will he be there? It's not just fitness-wise that he has to be there, it's also his own level. And he will turn 33 in March. So, yeah, 33 in March, he was born in 1993. So, nobody knows, that's the answer. I'm sorry, I know I sit on the fence. but nobody knows right now what he will be able to do in three months, four months. Will he stay injury-free, for example, which is a bit worried for him and for Monaco. Can he then, maybe in a month's time, start playing 90 minutes and then maybe twice every three days, 90 minutes, things like that?

1:04:33We don't know yet. Until we know that, then the rest will probably follow, if he's good enough on the pitch, on the ball, etc., etc. But that's the dream. The dreams are there to dream of, right? So let's dream. Let's dream that you might be there. That is a long way to go. How is a hell of a palaver to say no chance? He has to explain it. He's a journalist. This is why we pay him the big bucks. Well, you've got to fill the sheet up, haven't you? Yeah, exactly. Oh, no, sorry. Sorry you did that. No. I can also say you did that. He played five minutes and we go from him playing five minutes to he's going to the World Cup squad for friends.

1:05:12It's the dream, Ali. It's the dream. No, I hear you. I know, but you have said the word dream 27 times in the last 30 seconds. So I imagine that the dream may not be happening. All right. Well, much like Jules' other Frenchman in Hugo Lloris, he's been complaining that he's tired. So we're going to end things there. That's it for extra time. Wait, Jules was playing on turf? Was Jules playing on turf or what? He's playing on an artificial background right now for the show. So ESPN FC will be back tomorrow to recap all of the weekend's action. So make sure to tune in.

1:05:52Turn it up. Storm has zero sugar and 200 milligrams of caffeine. So you can turn that workout up a notch. Good energy in, good energy out. Energy for life.